


twelve ways to kiss someone

by rosegoldblood



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Humor, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, POV Third Person Limited, Purple Prose, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, happy birthday leo :), idk its just cheesy shit man
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:07:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25141399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosegoldblood/pseuds/rosegoldblood
Summary: a guide by frank zhang.
Relationships: Leo Valdez/Frank Zhang
Comments: 9
Kudos: 73





	twelve ways to kiss someone

**Author's Note:**

> whenever i write a leo/someone fic. it's always from the other person's point of view. i have no idea why this is, it just comes more naturally to me. also, i know i'm a little late, but happy birthday leo!! birthday boy. i wuv you, you're the centre of my ao3 writing career.
> 
> this story is inspired by sagamemes' post on tumblr. i hope you enjoy reading this because this is just absolutely self-indulgent gjbfgkj.

_one; for the first time._

"hey, you should kiss me."

frank rolled his eyes and tapped his pen against his chin. "and why's that?"

"you just should," leo answered, smile spread wide across his face. the next moment he had straightened to kneel on the chair next to frank's, chin nudging against frank's shoulder, wide brown eyes fluttering. "come on, first time. work with me here, why don't you?"

he tilted his head in a silent question, and frank rolled his eyes yet again, a fond smile growing on his face. "fine," he breathed out, and then their lips were connected, and it was better than frank had expected it to be.

the large grin on leo's face had faded away, the mischievous spark in his eyes gone, replaced by something more content. his fingers, which never kept still, moved down to fidget with frank's jacket, rubbing the fabric of the collar between his index and his thumb. leo pulled away, barely a centimetre, to exhale a small laugh before pushing their faces back together again.

frank had dropped both his notebook and his pen in favour of placing his hands on leo's hips, seated in his lap. the kiss was forceful, just like leo always was, the breath and air slowly draining from frank's chest (although he found he didn't really mind).

leo pulled away, and frank subconsciously butted his chin against the other's like he was chasing after him. "not so bad for a first time, right?" he asked, breathless, swiping his hand across his chin to wipe away the drool.

"you know what, leo," frank said, "i take it back. maybe not _all_ of your ideas are terrible."

-

_two; to shut him up._

"frank," a voice called his name, and frank had a pretty good idea of who it was. "frank. frankie. guess what." when he got no response, leo huffed, an over-exaggerated pout on his face. "frank, oh my gods, listen to me. guess what."

"you're being annoying again?" frank finally answered, when it was clear leo wouldn't leave him alone until he did. his eyes stayed focused on the sheet of paper in front of him even when leo groaned and tugged at his shirt. "did i get it right?"

leo crossed his arms. "no! well, yes. but also no! i'm annoying all the time, and that wasn't what you were supposed to guess." he jumped up onto the desk and kicked his legs back and forth, so light the table didn't even creak under his weight. "so... you want to know?"

a small hum came from frank as he pressed his lips together, writing his name down on the paper with his pen. "not particularly, no," he replied cheerfully, laughing at the sight of his boyfriend pouting once again.

"buford's back!" he sang, jumping up to stand on the table, his boots dangerously close to frank's face. " _buford!_ come out here!"

with perfect timing, frank heard the cabin door swing open with a rusty, thudding sound accompanying it. he turned around to see a table, stumbling around on its four legs, drawers sliding open as it tried to find its way to its owner. leo, with a surprising amount of athleticism, back-flipped off the table to land on his knees next to buford.

the mechanical table had gotten smashed to pieces in a game of capture the flag. although leo had nearly cried at the end of the game (making annabeth feel a _little_ bad), the thing was now back and more destructive than ever, spinning around and hopping up and down like an excited bunny.

"that's great, leo, seriously," frank said sincerely, "i promise i'll talk to you - and buford - later, but i'm kind of busy right now." leo drooped, standing up to walk over to frank. "at least let me finish this one thing, okay? then i'll be free."

"aw, but frank. don't you want to hear about the weird shit buford can do now?" both leo and his table bounced excitedly. "for one thing, he can open stuff now! so i kind of gave him this thing where the end of his legs kind of like, divide into two, so it's more like human hands, and he can grab... whatever he wants to grab. and he has this secret compartment where -"

frank leaned over and pressed their lips together. he heard a small _eep_ emit from leo, who froze for a moment before sinking into the kiss, wrapping his right arm around frank's neck while the other gripped the edge of the desk, steadying himself. frank laughed to himself, biting at the swell of leo's bottom lip, before pulling away.

"holy shit," leo whispered, running his fingers over his lip.

"sorry for not asking," frank said casually.

leo gaped before rushing forward and taking hold of frank's shoulders. "that was amazing. okay? okay. you have blanket permission to do that anytime you want unless i say otherwise, okay?" the other laughed. "frank. i'm serious. _blanket permission._ " he leaned back, the dazed look still on his face. "i'll leave you alone now, but we'll hang out later, yeah? okay? holy shit."

he wandered out, patting buford on the head before frank even got a chance to respond, a fond smile spreading across his face as he turned back toward his paperwork, pen still in hand.

-

_three; as comfort._

"i'm sorry."

frank shifted to prop himself up on one arm, looking around in the darkness. the sound had come from leo, lying curled up in a ball on the other side of the bed. the blankets had been tossed and kicked off, winding around his legs.

his fingers curled around the fabric of the pillow. "i'm sorry," he whimpered again, "i didn't mean for it to happen." frank sighed softly and wrapped his fingers around leo's shoulder, but the latter just shoved him off. "i didn't mean to - _please_!"

"leo!" frank yelled as leo's pillow burst into flames along with his hands and hair. he jerked awake, pressing his hands to his face to evaporate the tears away. "you were having a nightmare, weren't you?" leo looked confused for a moment, before his eyes fluttered shut and with a whispery exhale he nodded. "tell me about it."

he wrapped his arms around himself and shook his head. "no," he said, almost like he was forcing himself to say it, "it doesn't really matter. i'm sorry i woke you up, i just -" leo rubbed at his forehead, "- i'm sorry."

"don't be," frank said, pulling them closer together, smoothing his thumb along leo's knuckles, "leo, it matters. if you want to talk about it, you should. and i'll always be here to listen, okay?" he nodded, smiling weakly. "good. now, do you want to talk about it or not?"

"yeah," leo murmured, turning around to lean back into frank, "um. if that's okay. it was the - uh, it was the - my mother's old shop. where i lived. when i was a child. and - _hera_ was there, for some reason, and she was - she told me it was my fault." his hands were shaking. "it wasn't my fault. right? it wasn't -"

he was interrupted by the warmth of frank's hands enveloping his own, squeezing them in a reassuring way. "of course it wasn't," frank murmured, "you never could have known, leo." the shaking started subside, but the nauseated look was still plastered all over leo's face.

"i'm a freak."

"no," frank said firmly. leo sniffed and turned around to face him, "it wasn't your fault, and you're not a freak." he smoothed his fingers across leo's face, brushing a strand of curly hair out of the way. "and even if you were? i'd love you anyway."

there was silence, and frank's heart skipped a beat, wondering if he did something wrong - before leo lunged at him and kissing him. tears were still dripping down his face and down his cheeks, and frank swiped them away.

leo pulled away, breath stuttering, licking his lips. "thank you," he whispered, dropping his head onto frank's shoulder. frank shifted under the weight and smiled into leo's hair. "i just - i know i'm a bother. like, all this shit, you shouldn't have to deal with that on top of your own problems -"

"you're not a bother," frank reassured, almost immediately, "you mean a lot to me, and i'm always here for you - even when i'm not _here_ here." leo snickered at that, although frank wasn't sure why. "let's go to sleep now, okay? are you okay now?"

leo nodded, chewing on his bottom lip, before leaning forward to peck frank on the lips one more time. "for comfort," he snarked, and frank rolled his eyes.

-

_four;_ _out of pride._

"yeah, so we're like, boyfriends now."

frank sighed and dropped his head onto the table, face-first. he groaned loudly amidst his friends bombarding them with questions. leo laughed, cheerful and bright as always, patting frank on the top of his head, fingers combing through his straight black hair.

piper leered. "that's cool. so..." she wiggled her eyebrows, and leo wiggled his own back. everyone else at the table - annabeth, hazel, and nico - either sighed or rolled their eyes like they knew what was about to happen. "have you guys done the do yet? you know -"

"we know, piper," annabeth and frank droned at the same time, and piper just laughed. leo blushed, although it wasn't obvious on his dark skin, and brushed his hair back in embarrassment, although he was grinning ear-to-ear as he did when he was about to say something absolutely ridiculous.

"sadly, no," he replied, and frank groaned again. annabeth sent him a look of sympathy; her girlfriend conversing with her brother and both of them trying their damnedest not to pay attention to the conversation happening right next to them. "but we have kissed, if that's any reassurance."

piper bit her lip, restraining laughter, while annabeth respectfully stayed focused on the food in front of her. "pish. frank? kissing? nah, he's too much of a _prude._ " he jerked his head toward her at that. even hazel stopped mid-sentence to look at piper, although she had enough dignity to cough so as to not look too interested.

his cheeks were heating up, although he hated to prove piper's point. "i'm not a prude," frank protested. he looked around the table. leo was snickering to himself and so was annabeth, except annabeth was at least trying to restrain herself. frank's blush worsened. "what?" 

nico cleared his throat. "you are, at times... a prude."

frank made a strange noise at the back of his throat, looking to hazel for help. she just shrugged, as if she didn't know what to do. "shut up and eat your cupcakes, nico," he shot back defensively, and nico smirked. "i'm not a prude," he repeated.

"as if," piper sniffed in fake contempt, and this time hazel couldn't stop herself from giving a snort of laughter. she smiled apologetically at frank when he frowned at her. "just admit. like, you couldn't even kiss leo _right now_ , i bet."

"can too!" he huffed, and piper laughed with a retaliation of her own: _try it._ frank looked around the table, but annabeth had chosen to watch on without helping, and hazel still looked a little helpless (albeit entertained). nico was watching on coolly. 

leo laughed nervously, tugging at frank's jacket. "frankie, you don't have to if you don't want to. we won't think any less of you if you d -"

frank wrapped his hands around leo's shoulders and with a squeak emitted from the latter he nearly smacked their faces together, kissing him with all the ferocity he could muster to prove to the rest of them that he was _not a prude._

a content hum came from leo as frank internally decided to _fuck it_ and bit at his bottom lip, shoving his tongue into leo's mouth. he thought he heard a startled choke come from someone (probably hazel) but frank was too occupied with going to town on leo's mouth.

when he pulled away, leo was grinning stupidly, a dazed look on his face. "bwuh," he said eloquently before staring down at his plate and continuing to eat with the hazy, dumb smile on his face.

he looked from hazel, who was halfway between gaping and smiling, a blush spread across her face, to piper, who looked constipated with laughter. the gears turned in frank's mind and he sighed, shaking leo's shoulder. "you planned this, didn't you," he deadpanned, and piper fell of her chair cackling.

-

_five; out of greed._

"come on, leo. five minutes."

this time it was leo's turn to groan in exasperation. "frank. how come when you have to do work i'm supposed to leave you alone but when i have to do shit, you do this!" he gestured toward the bed, pouting, although the anger was clearly just for show. frank laughed and clung onto leo's arm like a lifeline.

"please? don't you love me?" he could see leo's resolve crumbling, despite it never being too strong in the first place. "you'll be with your siblings all day, doing whatever it is you do, and i won't get to see you until -" at this frank sniffed dramatically, "- _evening._ five minutes."

leo breathed out a laugh. "you know i have to eat lunch, too, right? you'll probably see me at like, noon." frank blinked. "gods, okay. five minutes." he slipped back into the bed, lying back down as frank wrapped himself around leo. "nyssa's going to be so angry at me. just because you want me all to yourself," he whined, smoothing his army jacket down.

"we're trying to make phones," he said, while frank pushed his lips against leo's neck, "you know, ones for demigods, devices that don't attract monsters. oh, we're actually aiming to make devices that ward away monsters, but we're not sure how to do that. magic, maybe? like, we could ask the hecate kids. what do you think?"

he continued to chatter, and frank breathed out a laugh at his enthusiasm. "well, the whole hecate cabin would have to come together to do that. the barrier around camp wasn't exactly a demigod-made thing, lion. and i know for a fact that the hecate kids don't do anything for anyone except themselves." 

leo sighed wistfully. "yeah... i know. but if i tell them about the phones, maybe... they'll feel like collaborating. besides -" he glanced at the clock and yelped. "jeez, seven minutes. gods. they're all going to be livid. frank, let go."

with a grin frank sat up and pulled leo toward him. the latter replied with a muffled _mmph_ and a half-exasperated, half-content sigh. he slid his hands down to leo's waist, and pulled away only to move lower and scatter kisses around his neck and collarbone. leo laughed into frank's hair.

"frank," he whined, inhaling sharply when frank grinned and bit down on his skin, sucking at the sore spot. "oh my gods. you're a freak. is there a mark -" leo pulled at the collar of his shirt and rolled his eyes at the darkening bite mark on the crook of his neck. "frank, it's been five minutes."

"five more, then," he said playfully.

"you're _so_ greedy."

it ended up being closer to thirty minutes, though neither of them particularly minded.

-

_six; out of envy._

"oh, guys, have you met sophie? she came at camp just a few months ago -" percy patted the girl next to her on the back, "- but she went back to her family for the holidays, so i don't think you've met her, right? sophie, that's frank and leo."

sophie waved. her light brown hair, dyed orange in streaks, was tied into a french braid swept across her shoulder. "i'm a daughter of hebe," she said, tugging at the sleeves of her jacket, "honestly, i'm still kind of getting used to this whole magical thing..." she laughed nervously.

"hey, i get it," leo reassured her, reaching across to shake her hand excitedly, "i'm leo! head counselor of cabin nine, hephaestus," he bragged, a tone of smugness in his voice, "and you know, this place can be kind of confusing. if you ever have any questions, you can just ask me."

and then he winked.

here was the thing about leo: he flirted. almost subconsciously. he wasn't unfaithful, it was just in his blood. frank wasn't exactly sure whether he was good at it, seeing as he was a little biased, but it seemed to be working on sophie, who blushed and rubbed at her arms.

frank introduced himself and glanced at leo, who was smiling cheerfully. soon, percy patted sophie on the back once again. "actually, i wanted to show sophie the arena, so if you guys don't mind, we'll be on our way, okay?" sophie drooped, just slightly, while frank lit up at the thought (although he did feel a little bad). "um. wait. what time is it?"

leo pulled a gadget out of his tool belt and squinted at it. "it's like... nearly two. why?"

he froze in spot and started squeaking. "fuck," he swore, "fuck, oh my gods. i promised to meet nico at the stables to help him with his - ugh! okay, it's fine, i'll take you to the arena anyway, we'll just have to go to the stables first to tell him -" percy paused, "- unless. can you guys take sophie to the arena instead? please?"

at this point percy was bouncing on his heels with excitement. frank wasn't exactly keen on sophie, but he also felt extremely bad at the prospect of percy facing a one week long silent treatment from his boyfriend yet again.

"sure, perce," frank replied when his compassion got the better of him, and leo laughed. he offered his arm out to sophie, who looped their arms together. frank pointed toward the arena. "um, it's that way. see you, percy!" he called to percy, who was sprinting in the direction of the stables. 

"so... percy told me you're a mechanic," sophie said, voice not quite seductive but definitely broaching it, a little too friendly and touchy for frank's taste. but leo was a touchy person with nearly everyone, so maybe he was worrying over nothing. "what's that like?"

another thing about leo: despite how much he flirted, he was almost startlingly oblivious when someone flirted with _him._ in his eyes, sophie was probably just being friendly. and maybe she _was_ just being friendly, but frank doubted it, and either way it got on his nerves.

leo rubbed at his neck. "yeah, i am! it's not really like anything, if you know what i mean, but it's pretty fun. being a genius and all." he wiggled his eyebrows, and sophie laughed. "how 'bout you? child of hebe, right? you've got to show me those healing powers sometime."

sophie blushed. "there's nothing special about them, really. whenever i get a scar, it just heals in like a minute, nothing impressive." they both giggled, and frank narrowed his eyes when she started to rub her hand up and down leo's arm, her voice going lower as she grinned alluringly. "anyway, _leo -_ "

with a huff and a _gods, i have to do everything myself, don't i_ frank pulled leo out of sophie's grip and kissed him. the girl gasped and frank smiled to himself in victory, sucking at leo's bottom lip and his tongue. he tasted like cinnamon toast from his late lunch and frank licked at his mouth in satisfaction.

"sorry, he's got a boyfriend," he remarked, as if at this point sophie hadn't realised already. "now let's go to the arena, shall we! it's just that way!" frank pointed at the structure and sophie nodded, a skittish smile on her face as she continued on.

he heard a small sigh come from next to him. "frank, you could've just told her. you didn't have to do that."

frank just shrugged.

-

_seven; out of lust._

"you have a really nice butt," frank mused.

leo straightened, a light blush dusting his cheeks. "you've mentioned," he shot back, box of machine parts cradles in both of his arms, "nearly every time i've bent over to get something, actually, you perv."

he crossed his arms and leaned against the shelf. "every time?" frank repeated, tapping at his chin like he was thinking. "no, i don't think so. and even if that was true, well, it's not my fault, now is it?" leo snorted and placed the box higher up on the shelf. "i think all of you is nice, leo," he said sincerely.

"you're not so bad yourself." leo grinned and butted his _(very nice)_ hips against frank's own. he leaned up, wrapping his arms around frank's neck, and kissed him. frank breathed out a laugh at the fact that he had to stand on the tips of his toes, before running his fingers along leo's waist and pushing him against the wall. "seriously, frank? we're doing this here?"

"doing what here?" he replied innocently. frank touched his nose to the other's, making him laugh, before leaning forward to connect their lips together again. he licked at leo's lips, used to the overly sweet taste of jelly beans, dragging his tongue along the line of leo's own. 

he pulled away and leo muttered a curse word as frank bit at the underside of his jaw. "language," he teased, trailing his finger across leo's collarbone, placing a kiss there for good measure. all leo did was swear once again, and frank huffed fondly, tugging at leo's green army jacket and slipping it off his lithe shoulders, tossing it somewhere behind him.

with a breathless laugh frank grabbed at leo's camp t-shirt and slid it off his shoulder, sinking his teeth into his shoulder, delighting in the gasp that came from leo, nails scratching gently over the back of frank's neck. he crooked his knee, pressing his leg in between leo's legs.

"you're such a -" leo made a questionable noise, "- pervert, frank, you're a pervert."

frank dragged his hands down to the hem of leo's shirt, fidgeting with the fabric and the rough sensation of the sloppy stitching there (whoever made the t-shirts probably weren't exactly professional tailors), hitching it up to leo's waist and placing his hand on the bare skin near his stomach.

"not a prude anymore?" he retaliated, and leo murmured _fuck off_ into the fabric of frank's shirt.

-

_eight; out of anger._

"pfft, is that all you got?" leo teased, readjusting his grip on the handle of his battleaxe. he swung it toward frank, who dodged easily.

"you wish," he responded smoothly, parrying the next blow with an easy swipe of one of his swords, bringing up the other one to slash at leo's chest. the blade caught on the metal of his armour but didn't harm him otherwise. before leo could retaliate frank lunged at him both swords, barely parrying with the long handle of his axe.

he backed away, panting. "okay. okay. can we take a timeout?" leo planted his axe into the dirt and made the stop sign with his hands, before planting them on his knees and bending over to catch his breath. frank sighed and backed away, pulling at the straps of his breastplate.

and then there was sand in his eyes. frank screeched like a banshee and dropped his sword to rub at his eyes while someone kicked him backward. when the sharp pain subsided, leo was standing above him, foot planted on his chest and axe blade pointed in his face.

"that's cheating!" frank snarled, fingers scrambling in the sand for any one of his swords, only to find out that they were both out of his reach. "wow. real fair, leo," he pretended to whine as hazel clapped enthusiastically in the background.

his boyfriend didn't seem to notice, preening in his victory. "all's fair in love and war!" he sang, prodding the tip of his axe into frank's chin. leo twisted around to call to hazel. "hey! that was a win, right?" he yelled at the girl approaching the two, raising up a small gadget that presented the numbers _2-3_.

"it is!" she clamped her hands together, looking at frank apologetically. "sorry, frank, but there really aren't any rules except the no powers thing... it was kind of your own fault for falling for it." frank sat up and sighed, rubbing at his arms. "that settles it. frank does leo's chores for the next two months." she paused and glanced at her watch. "oh, perfect timing! i have to go now. i'll see you guys later!"

hazel walked away, waving back, and leo extended his arm to help frank up. there was a smug grin on his face, smiling so wide as if this could convey everything he wanted to say without words. frank stood up, before leaning forward to press their lips together fiercely.

leo made a surprised noise, and frank pushed him back against the arena wall. there was a scar down the side of his face, and frank rubbed at the blood there, smearing it around. "cheater," he growled, kissing him again and relishing in the sensation of adrenaline.

"nah, you're just a dumbass," he breathed out, despite everything, and frank made a noise in the back of the throat and lunged toward leo again, unbuckling the straps of leo's breastplate and tossing it away. "mmm - are you seriously mad about this?" 

he just bit on leo's shoulder, ignoring the gasps of pain coming from him. frank tucked his hair behind his ear and kissed down leo's neck, scraping his teeth along the smooth skin, marking his neck and collarbones with dark circles and bite marks. leo pulled at frank's hair and shifted under him as the latter tore at the collar of his shirt.

frank straightened to kiss him one more time, more chaste and brief than the previous ones, before pushing away from the arena's wall and brushing dirt off his pants. "thanks, lion," he said, "i feel way better now. see you later!" he tucked his hands into his pockets and walked out of the arena, humming; leaving leo behind him, gaping with blood dripping down his face and his shirt half torn open.

-

_nine; as an apology._

"i'm sorry, leo."

"i told you, it's fine."

frank crossed his legs, leaning against the headboard, watching leo bite on his pen. at times, his tongue poked out to lick at the cap, but frank was too weighed down with guilt to feel disgusted. "no, you don't - leo, it was terrible of me, and i'm sorry i wasn't there when you needed me."

the other's face softened, a sad smile on his face. "dude, i'm all good now. yeah, i was kind of sad, but it was over as soon as it started and like - it's cool, i'm fine now. chillax." leo turned away to stare at his blueprints. "frank, are you still watching me with that kicked puppy look on your - yeah, that one. i'm fine."

"no, you're not," frank said softly, moving forward to sit next to leo atop the bed. "i can see it. i'm sorry. please tell me what's wrong." there was silence. "i messed up, i know - but i hope you still trust me even though i was a crappy person." he shrugged.

leo rubbed the paper between his fingers. "it's just - it's stupid." his voice cracked on the last word. "i was - when i - i keep thinking that you -" he groaned and flopped onto his back. "this sounds _so lame._ i kept thinking that you thought i was, maybe, like an embarrassment, or like you were ashamed of me."

"of course i'm not. you know that's not true." he stroked his hand along leo's back. "it was, you know, an important meeting that nobody else should hear. but i should've trust everyone else, and hazel, more, to discuss it without me while i took care of you." a small whimper. "you're important too."

he smiled for the second time, more weak rather than sad. "thank you," leo said, rubbing furiously at his eyes, which were quickly filling with tears. "um, quick question, which will sound _very_ stupid and weird and clingy, can you kiss me? like, it's totally fine if you d -"

interrupted by the feeling of a pair of lips on his, slow and languid. leo laughed into it, just slightly, rubbing at the muscle of frank's arms. when they pulled away, he was crying for real, wiping at them. "sorry," frank whispered one more time, to make sure.

"i forgive you."

-

_ten; to gain something._

"frank! give it back!"

the dagger in frank's hand, raised above his head, glinted in the sun. "not until you admit you're short," he teased, waving the weapon enticingly. leo pouted and shook his head like a child. "okay then, shortie."

leo made an offended noise. "ugh! i am _not_ short! i'm average height, thank you very much." he crossed his arms. "you're just freakishly tall. i mean, what are you, the empire state building?" frank nearly doubled over in laughter at that, though he made sure to keep the dagger out of leo's reach.

"aww, okay. i guess i'll just keep this then," frank said sweetly. he spun it between his fingers and to his delight it worked, making him look far more skilled than he really was. "what's wrong, leo? having trouble accepting r - _mmph!_ "

his arms drooped to his sides - leo had grabbed the collars of his jacket and pulled him down to kiss him. frank's eyes fluttered shut, and leo chose that moment to pull away, slide under frank's arm, and yank the dagger from his grip. 

frank rolled his eyes.

-

_eleven; out of habit._

"valdez! get your ass over here, or else."

with a groan, leo stood up on the tips of his toes _(shortie,_ frank thought) to kiss his boyfriend, rubbing his shoulder. he pulled away and waved goodbye to frank, skipping away toward his cabin, singing an old song rather loudly to annoy everyone around him.

it was nice, when he did that. the kissing, not the irritating singing (leo could actually sing quite well when he tried, he just did it terribly to annoy everyone else). when he did it not because he wanted something, or felt something special, just because he wanted to. because it felt normal.

frank did it, too. when he was doing paperwork, or about to go to bed, or when they were sparring. he'd lean forward, almost like it was muscle memory, press their lips together for a second or two. a small, habitual comfort. it didn't matter when, or where, or what they were doing. it was good, and it never stopped being good.

he never got bored of leo. despite leo's own worries, that frank would 'realise' that he was 'too good for leo', every single moment still lovely and happy no matter what. sometimes, it was passionate, like a landslide, slamming into him how much he _loved._ sometimes, it was peaceful, like flowers, like knowing he was helping someone just by existing.

maybe he was being a little dramatic, but love was one of the best feelings in the world. loving, and being loved. different, yet also, undoubtedly, similar. two sides of the same coin. and they were both amazing.

so when frank had to trudge through hours and hours of work and hundreds of words written in latin, trying to decipher the spellings of his legionnaires with absolutely abysmal handwriting, and leo would flounce into his office with all the grace of a giant crab - kissing him slowly, softly, then laughing and walking away with a snarky comment or a terrible joke, like it was all he came to do -

it reminded him that he was loved, that he had someone to love. that things might be crappy, and he was still recovering from, well, _everything_ , but things could be worse. he could be loveless, could have gone his whole life without knowing the feeling that made his worries disappear.

sometimes, when he woke up, leo would be sitting on the floor, tweaking at some gadget or another that he didn't particularly understand. frank'd sit down, pushing his shoulder against leo's, watched him work.

_"aren't you sleepy?"_ leo would ask.

_"not anymore,_ " he'd respond, and leo would laugh in his face and tease him about how cheesy he was. then he'd lean forward, draw his attention away from whatever he was making for just a second, kissing him like it was as natural as breathing.

and when leo would come up to him in the middle of camp, when he was talking to someone - reyna, jason, percy - yelling his name like it was important, only to just shrug and ask to be kissed. and frank would oblige, because how could he _not_? _"what's wrong?_ " he'd ask, as their friends pretended to retch in the background.

_"dunno. just felt like i needed to do that."_

\- it made him feel like he could do anything as long as leo stayed by his side and continued to say those things that he filed away in his mind and loved with all of his heart.

-

_twelve; out of love (with love; for love)_

"you're all talk. you love me, don't you?"

frank laughed and kissed him, like he always did, languid and lazy. "of course i do," he mouthed against leo's lips, then repeated it louder for leo to hear. and it was true; he did. it wasn't much of an admission anymore. frank loved letting people know he loved them almost as much as the love itself.

he said it freely. not just to leo, but to all of his friends, everyone who had ever sacrificed anything for frank. but he said it to leo _a lot,_ so much that the words felt more familiar on his tongue every time he said it, more natural. it was a phrase he used every day: _hi. good morning. good night,_ and _i love you, leo._

"you're such a hopeless romantic," leo teased, as if he wasn't one himself, trailing his fingers across the line of his cupid's bow. he lied down, kicking his legs against the side of the couch. "i like to hear you say it, you know." the smile on his face was shy, subconscious, the corners of his lips dragging up. "like every time you do, i feel a little better."

and that only fuelled frank's love for the phrase because if leo liked it, then it clearly wasn't that bad (an exception was made for french fries in ice cream; frank despised french fries in ice cream) (he bought both those things often just for leo, though). 

"well then," he began earnestly, "i love you, leo." who in question would roll his eyes and make another sardonic remark, despite the light in his eyes and the flush across his face.

here was the thing: it wasn't just a phrase. frank really did love him, every part of him. his eyes, an average middle brown, except they looked like a hundred different shades under the sun, and glowed when leo was using his powers, like fire lit up in his eyes too. 

his skin, too. despite being fairly dark (way darker than frank's), it was easy to scatter marks across his body. along his shoulder and above his hips, under his jaws and across his inner thighs, a reminder to carry with him when they were apart. and his hair, when he woke up in the mornings and it spiked and curled up all over the place. leo'd call it ugly. frank thought it was adorable.

it wasn't only his looks, of course. it was the way he ranted and rambled when he was passionate about something - frank would never grow tired of his voice, as long as he got to hear the happiness and enthusiasm behind it. it was the way he made a bad pun whenever he saw the opportunity for it, smiled like he knew it was bad but he'd said it anyway.

leo was brave. he was anxious, insecure, and overanalysed everything - but he was brave. he said what he wanted to say, did what he wanted to do. confident, maybe, was a better word. and frank had confidence himself, too, but it seemed to come so naturally to leo. one of the things he admired about him, among dozens.

so yeah, he loved him, and he'd tell leo so as long as he did. in the mornings, when frank would have to beg leo to stay with him for just a few more minutes, or vice versa depending on the day - he'd tell him then. 

during the evenings, when they were both free from their responsibilities, even if it was only temporary - he'd tell him then, too, among the strips of light radiating from the setting sun, painting the sky beautifully (although it never held a candle to leo). 

and at night, when one of them would wake up crying from nightmares of days long gone, and they'd comfort each other. say that everything would be alright, as long as they had each other, and everyone else. he'd tell leo then, too, being _there_ for him until he was okay.

frank'd press kisses all over him, to his lips, to his chest, to his hands, callused from working on machines all day and holding an axe during practice. kissing was nice. there were lots of ways to do it, and frank fully intended on trying every single way with leo. it was the embodiment of the three syllables he loved so much, expressed in the simple touch of their lips.

"i love you," he repeated, pushing their lips together again because no matter how many times they did it, he never got tired of it - the sensation of leo beneath him, alive with him despite everything that had ever happened. and the best part was: leo would always say it back, nose scrunching up, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

"i love you, too," he said, half a laugh.

and it was true.

**Author's Note:**

> shut up - i went so off-topic and they're so out of character :( i'm sorry lol. i also stayed up late for 2 days straight just to finish this so i'd really appreciate it if you left a comment or a kudos!


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